Colorado Ballet Forced to Furlough Dancers
The lack of audience to perform for has led the Colorado Ballet to announce on September 2 that the dance company will be laying off its dancers until January 2021.
COVID-19 is not only a health pandemic, it’s creating unstable economic conditions for many industries within the United States. The shutdowns have almost put arts and entertainment industries at a complete standstill, as it is currently unsafe for Coloradans to enjoy socially distanced live performances and productions. There are no concerts, not many drag shows to be found, and indeed no activity for dance performances.
This furlough of the dancers results from a loss of ticketing revenue since March, when Colorado first entered lockdown to keep citizens safe from contracting COVID-19. Colorado Ballet also announced that employees would see cuts to their salaries for the foreseeable future.
The move to furlough dancers and cut the salaries of staff members was made to ensure the company’s survival. The company has been around for 59 years, and is hoping to raise funds to retain its world-class talent during the pandemic. The fundraising goal for Colorado Ballet’s Relief and Recovery Fund, which will help replace the lost revenue from ticketing, has a $3 million fundraising goal. At the time of writing this article, hey have raised $344,403.
In March, Colorado Ballet announced the cancellation for Ballet Masterworks productions, and last month, Colorado Ballet announced the cancellation of The Nutcracker.
It is estimated that the ticketing revenue lost from The Nutcracker and Giselle is between $3.5 million and $4 million for the Colorado Ballet. With no audience, there is no revenue to be had. The opportunity for Colorado Ballet to perform The Nutcracker will be missed as the holiday season approaches, and as the ballet is seasonal. Giselle, on the other hand, has only been postponed. For the 2021 production of Colorado Ballet’s Ballet Masterworks, Giselle has been rescheduled to be performed when Ballet Masterworks 2021 was scheduled to be.
Previously, the 2021-2022 season was planned to have five productions, but the the company has announced only three. The reported production schedule for the 2021-2022 season is currently as follows:
The Great Gatsby (FEB 5 – 7, 2021)
The Wizard of Oz (MAR 5 –14, 2021)
Giselle (APR 9 –18, 2021)
The company will be celebrating its 60th anniversary season in 2021. Please consider contributing to Colorado Ballet’s Relief and Recovery Fund. The funds raised will help support dancers,the academy, and community education and engagement programs and will help them transition back into live stage performances when it is determined safe enough to resume production.
